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How can the City of San Antonio collect, explore, and evaluate solution-driven ideas from employees?

Project ended: July 1, 2020
Department or Agency: City of San Antonio

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Topics
Government Operations

Project Overview

Summary

For Phase 1, we designed and implemented a digital process for the City to collect, explore, and evaluate solution-driven ideas from front-line and mid level employees. The 3-month pilot was conducted with 100 COSA employee participants across 20 different departments.

Key results and lessons learned are that City staff are eager to be able to submit their ideas and have compelling, cost time saving ideas. There were over 300 interactions and more than 40 ideas submitted. More than half of the ideas submitted were in response to specific challenges put forth for ideas. Participants reported increased morale and engagement at work. Executive buy-in, how to implement trials, and funding for scaling the platform are the biggest barriers. The cost to continue the trial with access for all city employees (and eventually residents) is high under pilot partnership with Salesforce, so COSA’s Information Technology Systems Department is testing the success of utilizing low-cost, Microsoft 365 tools for the next phase of the idea portal.

Deliverables

  • A digital process for the City to collect, explore, and evaluate solution-driven ideas from pilot groups across departments and at varying levels of the organization.

Planned use of results

  • Collect inventive, viable, impactful ideas from employees.
  • Improve employee engagement and job satisfaction.
  • Provide a more transparent and democratic way to innovate City government.

The project is complete.

We’re eager to learn how you use the results and welcome any questions.

Project point of contact

Craig Hopkins

Chief Information Officer

ITSD, City of San Antonio


Project Team

Craig Hopkins

Chief Information Officer

ITSD, City of San Antonio

Shelby Najvar

AVP Innovation

USAA

Office of Innovation

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